Down But Not Out
by randomfics
Summary: It had been twenty-seven years since Sissel had first started watching over this little family. spoilers for AA:AJ and Ghost Trick


It had been twenty-seven years.

Twenty-seven years since Lynne had gotten married and had children. Twenty-seven years since the tiny black kitten had found his life inextricably tangled with the man known as Lynne's son. Lynne's son and his horrible, bad, no-good luck.

The bad luck that the cat had sworn was once Lynne's and only Lynne's. "So then Sissel, how have you and my son been doing lately?"

The kitten sighed as Lynne asked the dreaded words aloud. How was he doing? The answer was, quite frankly, not that well. With police work, Sissel could at least depend on the bodies being found soon enough that he could wind back time and save their lives. Having to watch over a lawyer though…

_"Not that well unfortunately. Has anyone told you that your son is as bad at dying as you are?"_ Sissel couldn't remember how many times he had to rewind time to save the childs life- and every time the soul was unconscious.

Just for once it might be nice to talk to the man that he had watch grow up from a child. But it didn't seem like that would be a possibility. The soul hadn't woken up once in the many times he had rewound time for him. At least it wasn't the five times in a single night…

"Has he been crushed by a giant chicken too?"

_"No, he raced across a burning bridge instead."_ Sissel could remember the frantic scrambling that had caused him, trying to make him last long enough to fall into the icy waters instead of the hard rocks. _"Try and beat some sense into him, would you?"_

Lynne laughed, "Like mother like son. I bet he had a really good reason why he had to cross that bridge."

Sissel sighed, unable to disagree with that. At the very least her son's heart was in the right place. "And now? I heard… I heard that he lost his badge."

(_… How much should I tell her? This is something he should tell his mother himself.)_

"Sissel, please. You know he won't tell me anything."

_"I don't think its my place to tell you. But- I promise you Lynne, just like I promised Jowd and Yomiel all those years ago, I'll watch over your descendants as well. I'll keep them alive."_

The promise to his friends… was hard to keep. Lynne's son had inherited all of her ability to be killed in humiliating ways. Yomiel's two children were younger then Lynne's surprisingly (or perhaps not as Yomiel had taken awhile to adjust to life no longer imprisoned in any way). Kamila, thankfully, was a sweet girl who wasn't dying, or getting married.

No, the one to think about was Lynne's son, and Yomiel's two children. Even if one of those two children were in Germany. Even if the other one sent an uneasy feeling straight to Sissel's guts. But Sissel had promised. He was going to keep them alive as best as he could, for as long as he could.

That was why…

_"Don't worry Lynne, Phoenix will be fine."_

The little girl Trucy was next to him, depending on Phoenix to keep himself together. Phoenix would do so, no matter what. Until he found her family members, he would stay strong for her.

Lynne Wright, (former) police detective extraordinaire, grinned, "You bet he will. Nothing can keep down a Wright you know! Though why he chose to became a lawyer is beyond me." She muttered to herself, pouting, "He should've been like his mother."

_"His mother got kicked out of the police force after dying too many times, remember? Cabanela knew your luck had to run out sometime."_

"Hey! I have you. You were the one to keep me alive, not luck. I ran out of that a long time ago."

Sissel's tail fluffed. _"There were a lot of close calls you know!"_ The cat paused, before voicing an entirely human sigh. _"I'm sorry that he did so as well Lynne."_

It was a sore point to the woman, uneased by the sting of years. Lynne blinked back tears, gathering the cool body of a dead cat into her arms. She could feel the lump buried beneath fur, of a rock that had fallen from the heavens. His own great loss that nobody could ever change.

"It looks like my son and I have so very much in common."

Both barred from the jobs they loved best, both having experienced loss after loss, struggling to prove that they were capable of the jobs they loved and had chosen.

Sissel leaned against her, unable to feel the pressure of her hand, the warmth of her body, and looked up to the heavens.

_"I won't allow the story to get any sadder from here."_

"You can't promise that I'm afraid Sissel. You're just one cat."

Sissel's tail lashed sideways, curling around the womans arm. _"I want to help."_ He sounded lost- and just a little broken. So many losses were piling up in the Wright's lives, so many promises left unfilled.

"It's nothing that the Wright's can't overcome. He'll need a little help from his living friends, but that's okay." Lynne smiled, completely confident, and like she was once again only twenty years old, "That's what family is for, isn't it?"

The doorbell rung loudly. Sissel leapt to a comfortable perch to see what would happen. Sharp eyes fixated on the door as Lynne pulled it open, a confident, cocky grin still on her face.

A young man, carrying a sleeping little girl walked in. His usual neat blue suite looked odd, it hung loosely off him, his head was down, and he was sweating bullets. "Ma- I- I want you to meet my new daughter Trucy."

"She's _adorable_."

Sissel perked up from his perch. The cat jumped down, not minding the distance, pacing closer to the sleeping girl. He licked her fingers curiously, knowing he wouldn't taste anything.

Loss hadn't defined this family yet- not by a long shot. It only made them turn, twist, and gather up energy for their rebound.

It would be interesting to see, when Phoenix Wright finally returned. It would be explosive and gigantic, showing off and utterly overwhelming.

Until then… The Wright family would wait.

* * *

_a/n: Just a little head cannon._


End file.
